


The Same Candlelight

by enigmaticblue



Category: Bones
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-03-25
Updated: 2010-03-25
Packaged: 2017-10-08 07:42:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,380
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/74273
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/enigmaticblue/pseuds/enigmaticblue
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"She's like an ancient artifact/Something you're lucky to have found…She outshines anyone/who ever might dare to bask in the same candlelight."</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Same Candlelight

**Author's Note:**

> Written for my BFF, who wanted Booth, Brennan, and those three little words. Title from the Relient K song, "Candlelight."

**_“He knows the truth of you, and he is dazzled by that truth.”_ ~From “The Harbingers in a Fountain**

Dr. Temperance Brennan wasn’t scared by much. She had faced off with soldiers bent on hiding the truth in Guatemala, ignored demands from those in power to cease her work, and had shot a serial killer to save her partner.

She had even—in a fit of brilliance or insanity, depending on who you asked—allowed Booth to throw knives at her. Well, _around_ her. All for the sake of uncovering the truth.

Soldiers and serial killers and knives —those had been easy. Brennan feared being shot or stabbed much less than she feared having her heart broken.

Brennan had lost her virginity to her professor at the age of 22, and that was the first and last time she’d been in love. He had flattered her where no one had before, complimenting her sharp mind and her physical appearance in equal measure.

Looking back, Brennan realized that he had played on her vulnerabilities and her admiration for him—but for what purpose, she couldn’t say. He hadn’t taken over her research or used her in an academic sense. She had to assume that he’d wanted something more personal, and Brennan suspected that she’d never know just what that was.

She’d had strong feelings for Sully, and she suspected it bordered on love—or the chemical response in the brain that Booth would call love. She had certainly respected him, and enjoyed his company, and she hadn’t wanted him to leave. He had, though, just like everyone else in her life.

Now, she was afraid; Brennan had been skirting the issue for months, revising long-held opinions about marriage, and telling Booth that she was willing to believe that love wasn’t just a chemical response in the brain. She’d hoped that Booth would take the hint, that he would take that first step as he had so many times before.

For the first time, fear had overcome her desire for the truth.

Once upon a time, she had believed that the truth was everything, and she had risked everything for it. Now, she wasn’t so sure.

~~~~~

“Are you going to ask her?”

Booth moved his shoulders uncomfortably. “I don’t think it’s any of your business.”

“It’s my wedding, Seeley. Padme has been bugging me about your date. You’re bringing Temperance, aren’t you?” Jared knocked back a drink and waved the bartender over to give him another.

Booth still hated talking about Bones with Jared; it left a sour taste in his mouth that he couldn’t quite shake. “I’m going to ask her,” he finally sighed. “Just—back off, okay?”

Jared raised his hands in that half-defensive, half-mocking gesture that had always driven Booth nuts. “Yeah, yeah. Okay.”

Booth finished the last swallow of his beer and stood. “I’ll see you Friday.”

“You got the strippers, right?” Jared asked with a grin.

Booth shook his head. “I got you covered, little brother.” He clapped Jared on the shoulder, calling out as he left, “Take a cab home, Jared.”

“Padme said she’d pick me up,” Jared replied carelessly.

So careless, Booth thought. Jared always had been careless—heedless of the consequences because he’d known his brother would take the necessary care.

Jared was Padme’s problem now, Booth reminded himself. Jared had found himself a gorgeous woman, and he was settling down. Maybe he’d man up, and Booth wouldn’t have to bail his ass out.

At least Booth knew that _he_ wouldn’t turn into their dad. He’d finally figured out that Bones was right: he _was_ made by better stuff.

~~~~~

Brennan bent closer to examine the remains that a couple of teenagers had discovered. Booth was telling her that the adolescents had been trying to find a spot to make out away from the prying eyes of family and friends. Brennan didn’t care what they had been doing, as long as they hadn’t disturbed the scene.

“These remains are from a male, middle aged, probably between the ages of 45 and 50.” She moved the skull slightly to get a better look at the lower mandible and teeth. “I’m not sure this will help, but he’d been grinding his teeth for quite awhile.”

“Yeah, probably not,” Booth replied. “But I’ll check missing persons for a description of a middle-aged tooth grinder.”

Brennan raised her head, a little surprised by how snappish Booth sounded. But then, he’d been quarrelsome all week, at first because he’d been hung over. She couldn’t determine a reason for it now, though. “It may help give confirmation, Booth. I won’t be able to tell you more until we get the body back to the lab.”

“Sorry,” Booth said, raising his hands in a defensive gesture Brennan knew well. “I just—I have to ask you something.”

“Okay.” Brennan rose from her crouch. “There’s nothing more I can learn here. We should move the body back to the lab, along with soil samples for Hodgins. What did you want to ask me?”

Booth cleared his throat. “Would you go to Jared’s wedding with me?”

Brennan frowned, thinking about her schedule. “I don’t know. When is it?”

“About a week and a half,” Booth replied. “Saturday evening. It’s some big shindig, and Jared thinks I need a date. He thought I should ask you.”

Brennan considered the request. “He thought you should ask me because I’m your partner, right?”

In the fading light, Brennan couldn’t be certain that she was actually seeing the flush on Booth’s cheeks. “Yeah, that’s right, Bones. We’re partners.”

She suspected that he wasn’t being entirely honest with her, but she couldn’t be certain. “Partners,” she agreed.

Brennan recognized a half-truth for what it was these days; she knew that they weren’t just partners, but fear prevented her from pushing for more.

~~~~~

Booth waited in the foyer of the large manse Padme’s parents had rented, antsy with boredom and anxiety from not having seen Bones yet. His duties as best man had required him to be present well over an hour before the ceremony was scheduled to begin, and he’d been kept busy running errands, corralling ushers, and sobering Jared up.

Cam had told him that she and Brennan would be riding together, and he was certain that Cam would call him if there was a problem.

The prelude started up, and Booth waited for his cue as the other groomsmen walked their respective bridesmaids outside and down the grassy aisle, between two large sections of white chairs, festooned with white and silver.

Booth had to admit that this wasn’t quite the wedding he’d been expecting from a former escort; it was elegant and classy, and he was more comfortable there than he’d thought he’d be.

He held his arm out for Padme’s younger sister, and she gripped his elbow tightly with a giggle that indicated someone had opened a bottle of champagne in the bridal suite. The groomsmen had been sipping from a bottle of really good bourbon.

As he paced next to Padme’s sister—what was her name? Jessica, Jasmine, something starting with a J—he caught sight of Bones seated towards the front on the groom’s side. His steps faltered as her beauty hit him once again; even Cam’s considerable beauty seemed to dim next to his Bones.

Padme’s sister—Jamini, he thought—tugged on his arm to get him moving again, and Booth held Brennan’s gaze for as long as he could before he had to focus on his brother, and the pastor, and taking his place with the rest of the groomsmen, next to Jared.

“What was that?” Jared whispered. “You didn’t touch the bourbon.”

He was saved from having to reply by Padme’s appearance, and the crowd stood as the wedding march started up. Bones was hidden behind some taller people, lost in the mass of faces, and Booth wished he could see her.

In that moment, he wanted to see no one else, nothing else.

When everyone took their seats, he had to turn to face the front, and he had to be content with the glimpse he’d caught.

~~~~~

Brennan had been mildly curious to see how Jared and Padme would blend their differing cultural traditions. She wasn’t sure whether to be pleased or disappointed that they’d gone with a very bland Westernized version of the marriage ceremony. Instinctively, she knew that if Booth was to get married—and she deliberately _didn’t_ think about whom he’d marry—it would be more religious.

He would invoke God, and he would want a church. And even though Brennan didn’t share the same beliefs, she was beginning to respect his.

Jared seemed to feel no such desire, and the ceremony, though bland, was thankfully short. In no time at all, Jared was walking his new bride back down the aisle, and the guests were being dismissed to mill about as the reception hall was readied.

“Still think this is an archaic tradition?” Cam asked, leaning closer to whisper in Brennan’s ear.

“Yes,” Brennan replied automatically, then corrected herself, “Well, maybe. I will admit that ceremonies serve important purposes to mark key transitions in life, anthropologically speaking.”

“So, you don’t think it’s an archaic tradition.” Cam sounded amused now, but Brennan was used to that.

Brennan shifted uncomfortably. “Well, marriage has been around for thousands of years, so by definition, it _is_ archaic. But I will accept that it has meaning for some people.”

Cam smiled, as though she knew a particularly good secret. “I see.”

“You don’t agree?”

“No, no, I think you’re right. Marriage has meaning for a lot of people, and traditions are important. Check.” Cam rose, smoothing down her green dress. “I think it’s time for us to greet the bride and groom.”

Brennan followed Cam’s example, giving both Jared and Padme perfunctory embraces, and offering her congratulations as graciously as possible. She was no longer quite so uncomfortable around Jared; she had forgiven herself for doubting Booth. Brennan liked to think that she’d made up for it.

She mingled with the crowd, shaking hands and introducing herself, putting up with exclamations of, “Are you really _that_ Temperance Brennan?”

The first time she got that question, she began to explain that the low frequency of the name “Temperance”, coupled with her last name, made meeting a “Temperance Brennan” who was _not_ her very unlikely. Before she could get underway on the probabilities, however, Cam elbowed her and said, “Yes, she’s _that_ Temperance Brennan, and she works at the Jeffersonian Institute when she’s not writing. I’m Camille Saroyen, head of the medical-legal lab there.”

Brennan took the hint, however grudgingly, and refrained from citing statistical equations the next five times she heard the same question. “Why do they keep asking that?”

Cam smiled. “Because people like knowing they’ve met someone famous.”

Brennan thought it was ridiculous, but she didn’t bother saying so. Instead, she wandered around and made small talk to the best of her ability, sipping from a glass of wine she’d snagged from a passing waiter.

A hand plucked her empty glass out of her grasp, depositing it on a passing tray and grabbing two more in a seamless movement.

“Booth! I thought you had best man duties,” Brennan said, feeling incredibly pleased by his presence.

“I did, and I have discharged them admirably.” Booth turned his charm-smile on her, and Brennan felt herself melting, even though she normally considered herself immune. “And now I’m going to hang out with the prettiest girl here.”

Brennan frowned. “Who would that be?”

His smile softened. “It’s you, Bones.”

She felt her cheeks grow warm. “Oh.” Then, belatedly, she added, “Thank you.”

“Save a dance for me later?” Booth asked. “I’ll have to dance with a couple of bridesmaids, but I’m counting on you to save me from grabby hands.”

“Grabby hands?” Brennan inquired, not knowing quite what he meant.

Booth gave her a goofy grin. “Yeah, you know bridesmaids. They get a little tipsy, and they go after the eligible groomsmen. Namely, me.”

“I’ll save you a dance, and I will save you from grabby hands,” Brennan promised him.

“Good. Great.” Booth hesitated, then said quietly, “Thanks for being my date, Bones.”

Brennan opened her mouth to ask him if this was what partners did, but something made her pause. If she asked, maybe he wouldn’t take that next step, and she felt as though they were teetering on the edge of something important.

And while she would never admit to going by her gut, there was no mistaking the signs of arousal in Booth’s twinkling eyes, and the flush in his cheeks, and the way his hand lingered on her elbow.

“Thank you for asking me,” she said instead.

And she thought maybe they were getting closer to the time when she would need to speak the truth, no matter how risky it might be.

~~~~~

Booth danced with Jamini when he was supposed to, and drank a couple of glasses of wine, and then he stole Bones out of the arms of some stockbroker who looked to be getting too familiar.

“Enjoying yourself?” Booth asked, whirling Bones around the dance floor, and feeling like the luckiest man in the world.

Brennan smiled, looking pleased with herself. “Now I am. The stockbroker had grippy hands.”

“Grabby hands, Bones,” he corrected her with a smile.

Her cheeks were flushed with wine and the warmth of the room, matching the dark red of her dress. “You knew what I meant.”

“Yeah, I did.”

Later, Booth would never quite know if it was the wine, or how beautiful she looked, or the general atmosphere of a wedding. The words tumbled from his lips before he thought better of them. “I love you.”

This time, he didn’t backpedal, or try to hide what he was feeling. He let the words stand, trusting that Brennan’s love for the truth would at least allow her to accept his declaration in the spirit in which it was offered.

To his surprise, however, she smiled, so brightly Booth felt his heart lurch and begin beating again, twice as fast. “I love you, too.”

And because he could think of nothing else to say, he smiled and held her tighter, and danced.


End file.
